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• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY

The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

The Development of
Phased-Array Radar Technology
Alan J. Fenn, Donald H. Temme, William P. Delaney, and William E. Courtney
■ Lincoln Laboratory has been involved in the development of phased-array
radar technology since the late 1950s. Radar research activities have included
theoretical analysis, application studies, hardware design, device fabrication, and
system testing. Early phased-array research was centered on improving the
national capability in phased-array radars. The Laboratory has developed several
test-bed phased arrays, which have been used to demonstrate and evaluate
components, beamforming techniques, calibration, and testing methodologies.
The Laboratory has also contributed significantly in the area of phased-array
antenna radiating elements, phase-shifter technology, solid-state transmit-and-
receive modules, and monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC)
technology. A number of developmental phased-array radar systems have
resulted from this research, as discussed in other articles in this issue. A wide
variety of processing techniques and system components have also been
developed. This article provides an overview of more than forty years of this
phased-array radar research activity.

     was certainly

T
affordable array radar with thousands of array ele-
not new when Lincoln Laboratory’s phased- ments, all working in tightly orchestrated phase co-
array radar development began around 1958. herence, would not be built for a very long time. In
Early radio transmitters and the early World War II retrospect, both the enthusiasts and the skeptics were
radars used multiple radiating elements to achieve de- right. The dream of electronic beam movement was
sired antenna radiation patterns. The Army’s “bed achievable, but it has taken a long time to achieve the
spring” array, which first bounced radar signals off the dream, and it is not yet fully realized—we still need to
moon in the mid-1940s, is an example of an early ar- reduce the cost of phased-array radars. We are cer-
ray radar. A new initiative in the 1950s led to the use tainly encouraged, however, by the progress in mod-
of rapid electronic phasing of the individual array an- ern solid state phased arrays.
tenna elements to steer the radar beam with the flex-
ibility and speed of electronics rather than with much The Beginning
slower and less flexible mechanical steering. Many in- Lincoln Laboratory started working on phased-array
dustrial firms, government laboratories, and aca- radar development projects around 1958 in the Spe-
demic institutions were involved in developing meth- cial Radars group of the Radio Physics division. The
ods for electronic beam steering. In fact, this research initial application was satellite surveillance, and the
area in the 1950s could be characterized as “one thou- level of national interest in this work was very high
sand ways to steer a radar beam.” Bert Fowler has after the Soviet Union’s launch of the first artificial
written an entertaining recollection of many of these earth satellite—Sputnik I—in 1957. The Laboratory
efforts from the 1950s to the present [1]. had played a key role in the development of the Mill-
Many skeptics at that time believed a workable and stone Hill radar under the leadership of Herbert G.

VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 321


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

Weiss, a radar visionary. At that time, the Millstone tion angle, which were mechanically scanned across
Hill radar was one of the few radar instruments in the the cylindrical reflector. The klystron transmitters
world with satellite detection and tracking capability. were coupled to three horizontal linear arrays that did
Weiss, along with others in the U.S. Air Force, fore- not use the reflector, nor did they electronically scan.
saw that the United States would soon need the capa- They formed a fan beam in elevation angle, which
bility to detect all satellites passing over its territory. was scanned across a large portion of the sky as a re-
The volume of radar surveillance needed to accom- sult of the mechanical drive in a large center hub
plish this task was clearly enormous, which meant (hence this massive machine was given the irreverent
that radars of great power, antenna aperture, and nickname “centrakluge”). Average power output from
beam agility would be required. a group of 900-MHz klystrons was to be one mega-
One approach to solving this surveillance problem watt. This hybrid array concept had great power,
was to build a large planar array of some five thou- great receiving aperture, and a rapid wide-angle scan
sand UHF elements. Weiss’s intuition told him the capability. It was configured to survey huge volumes
nation was not yet equipped with the capability to of space, so that one installation could detect all satel-
produce reliable low-cost components that would al- lites passing over the United States up to an orbital al-
low engineers to implement a radar with five thou- titude of three thousand nautical miles.
sand individual transmitters and receivers. The coun- The Laboratory’s focus at the start of this develop-
try, however, did have some big UHF klystrons in the ment effort was to find efficient ways to build the
Millstone Hill radar transmitter (2.5-MW peak long linear phased arrays for the receivers. A variety of
power, 100-kW average power), and klystrons such as beamforming schemes were investigated, including
these could be incorporated into a phased-array radar beamformers at intermediate frequencies (where high
of sorts. Thus began a search of a variety of hybrid losses could be tolerated), radio-frequency (RF) di-
mechanically scanned and electronically scanned an- ode-switched phase shifters (where losses needed to
tenna-array configurations that would use a few of be kept very low), and RF multibeam beamformers.
these big klystrons. This hybrid electronic-scan/mechanical-scan ap-
Figure 1 is a drawing of the favored hybrid con- proach had critics who argued that it could track sat-
cept, which featured a cylindrical receiver reflector ellites only in a track-while-scan mode, and it could
140 ft high by 620 ft long [2]. Three rotating vertical not track high-interest satellites outside of its some-
linear arrays formed multiple receive beams in eleva- what restricted vertical search window. The nation

FIGURE 1. Drawing of a proposed 1950s-era hybrid phased-array radar that combined mechani-
cally scanned and electronically scanned antenna-array configurations.

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• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

seemed to favor the five-thousand-element, full


phased-array approach, an option that was encour- The Sixteen-Element Test Array
aged by a significant U.S. Air Force effort on elec- The strong emphasis on making phased arrays into
tronic scanning array radar (ESAR) at the Bendix practical devices led to the construction of a 900-
Corporation. Also, many engineers in the defense MHz, sixteen-element linear-array fixture as an array
community of that era really wanted the nation to test bed, where array components, such as antenna el-
build a full planar phased-array radar. ements, low-noise amplifiers, intermediate-frequency
The increase in national interest in ballistic missile (IF) amplifiers, mixers, transmitters, and beamform-
defense shifted everyone’s focus toward planar phased ing techniques could be tried, tested, and exercised.
arrays because the challenges and intricacies of active The array test bed was mounted as a feed looking into
missile defense would demand every ounce of radar a parabolic cylinder reflector, and this whole antenna
beam agility, flexibility, power aperture, and wide- structure was mounted on a rotating pedestal and
angle scan that the radar community could muster. housed in a radome on the rooftop of Lincoln
Therefore, interest in linear arrays faded—planar ar- Laboratory’s C Building, as shown in Figure 2. A wide
rays were what was needed—but the nation was still a variety of embryonic phased-array receiver and trans-
long way from achieving the dream of an affordable mitter components were developed and tested in this
planar phased array. sixteen-element array over the first five years of the
Laboratory’s program.
The Early Years
By 1959, a cadre within the Special Radars group at
the Laboratory had formed around a phased-array vi-
sionary, John L. Allen, to push the development of
phased arrays for a wide variety of military missions,
with ballistic missile defense as the mission for which
such radars were most obviously needed. Allen’s goal
was to conduct a broad development effort on arrays,
starting from array theory and extending to practical
hardware developments, in order to improve the na-
tional capability in phased arrays to a point where we
had reliable and reasonable-cost array components, a
variety of beam-scanning techniques, and a sound
understanding of array theory. The work had to have
a practical orientation, and the Laboratory’s effort
had to connect with and influence the wide diversity
of array research going on in industry and govern-
ment laboratories.
Thus in 1959 the Laboratory launched a broad at-
tack on new developments in theory and hardware,
and through the ensuing five years the phased-array
effort functioned very much as an intellectual open
house to share insights with other researchers and as a
clearinghouse to help industry try out its ideas. The
Laboratory developments were chronicled in a series FIGURE 2. Sixteen-element linear-array test-bed facility at
Lincoln Laboratory in 1960. Phased-array components such
of yearly reports entitled “Phased-Array Radar Stud-
as antenna elements, low-noise amplifiers, intermediate-fre-
ies,” which were best-sellers in the array community quency amplifiers, mixers, transmitters, and beamforming
[3–6]. techniques were tested in this facility.

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• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

tially to the development of workable diode phase


Phased-Array Components shifters that found their way into a wide variety of
The initial experimentation with array antenna ele- phased-array radars. This diode phase-shifter work
ments started with log-periodic structures that were and related ferrite phase-shifter work are described in
reported to have a desirable low mutual coupling. a subsequent section of this article.
The early experiments, however, showed that dipole
elements were better candidates for arrays, and much Retrospective on the Early Years
of the ensuing work was on dipole radiators. There were several enduring values to the phased-ar-
Low-noise front-end amplifiers for phased-array ray work in these early years. First, the Laboratory
receivers were a substantial area of investigation. quickly became “wet all over” in this new technology
Work started with a complex electronic device called of phased arrays. The work covered a broad front, in-
the electron-beam parametric amplifier, invented by cluding theory, hardware, experimental arrays, and
Robert Adler at Zenith Radio Corporation and Glen systems analysis on military problems requiring
Wade at Stanford University. More conventional di- phased arrays. Second, the focus on driving for the
ode-based parametric amplifiers were also investi- practical, low-cost, highly reliable components that
gated. The desire for simpler and lower-cost ap- would make phased arrays a viable future option
proaches led to work on tunnel-diode amplifiers; this helped set the appropriate tone for the national re-
effort finally settled on low-noise transistor amplifiers search agenda in phased arrays of that era.* Third, the
with the advent of the field-effect transistor. Lincoln Laboratory group under the leadership of
IF amplifiers, mixers, and transmitters using me- John Allen was very much an open house and a forum
dium-power tetrodes were also developed and tested for industry, academic, and government workers of
in configurations that would allow them to fit in a that day. In this fashion, the work performed at the
planar-array structure at 900 MHz. Laboratory had an amplified impact that went well
One of the major efforts was in the development of beyond the efforts of the ten or so researchers in the
various ways to steer the radar beam electronically. Laboratory phased-array radar group.
Beamformers that worked at IF were one of the earli-
est approaches, and a variety of schemes were built The Ensuing Years
and tested. Techniques that worked directly at RF In subsequent years, Lincoln Laboratory made sig-
were also investigated. One invention of that time nificant contributions to phased-array technology, in-
was the Butler beamforming matrix, which received cluding array-element design, phase shifters, solid-
early and comprehensive testing at Lincoln Labora- state transmit-and-receive modules, gallium-arsenide
tory after its invention by Jesse Butler of Sanders As- monolithic microwave integrated circuits, and array
sociates around 1960 [7, 8]. An interesting nuance of calibration and testing.
the Butler matrix was its microwave wiring diagram,
which was identical to the computational flow graph
of the fast Fourier transform that hit the headlines a
* In 1970 Lincoln Laboratory cosponsored a phased-array
number of years later. In retrospect, this similarity
symposium [11] in New York City, which brought together
was no surprise, because the Butler matrix was indeed many contributors to the field of phased-array technology.
a Fourier transformer [9, 10]. In fact, the Laboratory The symposium covered all the major aspects of phased-ar-
built a low-frequency version of the Butler matrix to ray theory, design, and manufacturing, including array-ele-
serve as a Fourier transformer for a radar burst-wave- ment design, feed networks and beam-steering methods,
form-matched filter. phase-shifter technology, solid state technology, and array-
testing techniques. Carl Blake and Bliss L. Diamond of the
The search for digital devices that could electroni-
Laboratory were prominent in the organization of this sig-
cally scan radar beams led to a major research effort in nificant phased-array meeting, which assessed the state of the
digital diode-switched microwave phase shifters. The art and provided a comprehensive, up-to-date source of in-
Laboratory’s work in this area contributed substan- formation on phased-array antennas.

324 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

Array-Element Design θ
Mutual coupling
One of the fundamental difficulties in designing a
phased array is that significant portions of the micro-
... . . . Antenna
elements

wave power transmitted by one element of the array Amplifiers


can be received by the surrounding array antenna ele- φ φ φ φ φ φ φ Phase shifters
ments. This effect, which is known as array mutual
coupling, can result in a substantial or total loss of Power divider
transmitted or received radar signal, depending on
the coherent combination of all of the mutual-cou- RF source
pling signals in the array. The amplitudes and phases
(a)
of the array mutual-coupling signals depend prima-
rily on the shape of the radiating antenna elements,
the spacing between the array elements, and the num-
ber of radiating elements. There are as many different
Scan sector
design possibilities for phased arrays as there are doz-
ens of different radiating array elements to choose
from, and the spacing and number of radiating ele-
ments can vary widely, depending on the scanning re-
quirements. Naturally, we needed to understand fully
the mutual-coupling aspects of whatever radiated ele- Angle
ment was selected. Thus the Laboratory investigated (b)
many different array-element designs, taking into ac-
count mutual-coupling effects.
The Laboratory’s investigation of the theory of ar-
ray antennas began in 1958 and has continued
through the ensuing years. Allen’s early work contrib-
uted markedly to the understanding of array antennas
in that era [12]. There was a strong focus on under-
standing and modeling array mutual coupling and its
impact on array performance. As described below,
this theoretical and experimental work was continued
at the Laboratory by Diamond [13], Diamond and
George H. Knittel [14], Gerasimos N. Tsandoulas
[15–19], and Alan J. Fenn [20, 21].
(c)
A significant challenge in designing phased arrays
is meeting requirements of scan volume and band- FIGURE 3. General concept of a phased-array antenna that
width while avoiding blind spots and maintaining electronically combines element patterns to point the radar
beam in a particular direction. (a) The antenna uses phase
low sidelobes [11, 22–26]. Figure 3(a) shows the con-
shifters to steer the radar beam electronically over the scan
cept of a corporate-fed phased-array antenna that uses sector. The radio-frequency (RF) source produces a radar
phase shifters to electronically steer the radar beam waveform that is divided up into individual paths called ele-
over the scan sector. The RF source produces a radar ment channels, each containing a phase shifter and ampli-
waveform that is divided up into individual paths fier. (b) An idealized radiation pattern from a single antenna
element covers the scan sector, with signal strength drop-
called element channels, each containing a phase
ping outside of the sector. (c) When all the phase shifters of
shifter and amplifier. the array are properly aligned, the array produces a main
Figure 3(b) shows an idealized element-radiation beam in the desired pointing direction.

VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 325


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

pattern that covers the scan sector, with signal 0


(a)
strength dropping outside of the sector. When all the

Relative gain (dB)


phase shifters of the array are properly aligned, the ar- Ideal
–10
ray produces a main beam in the desired pointing di- Blind spots
rection, as shown in Figure 3(c). Generally, the corpo-
–20
rate feed is designed with minimal crosstalk between Blind spots must be
channels. Once the signals have reached the radiating avoided over the
–30
desired scan sector
antenna elements, however, a significant amount of
crosstalk (i.e., array mutual coupling) occurs. The Scan sector
amplitudes and phases of these mutual-coupling sig- –40
nals can seriously impact the performance of the
1
phased array.
(b) Scan sector
If the array-element spacing is around one-half-

Reflection coefficient
wavelength, substantial amounts of mutual coupling
can occur. This coupling manifests itself in often del-
eterious changes in the element’s radiation pattern
and its reflection coefficient. Unless care is taken in
the design of the array, blind spots in the radar-scan Blind spots
sector can occur. These blind spots are angles where Ideal
the element pattern has a null and the reflection coef-
0
ficient of the array has a peak close to unity, as de- –90 –60 –30 0 30 60 90
picted in Figure 4. At these blind spots the total radar Scan angle (deg)
signal is significantly reduced in amplitude.
FIGURE 4. Conceptual images of blind-spot occurrence in a
Sometimes we would like to place a blind spot in phased-array antenna. These results are typical of an array
directions where it is undesirable to transmit or re- designed without regard for array mutual-coupling effects.
ceive radar energy. For example, Figure 5 compares a A blind spot occurs when either (a) the array element pat-
broadside-peak radiator (dipole or waveguide aper- tern has a null or (b) the element reflection coefficient has
unity magnitude. The blind spot is often caused by array mu-
ture) and a broadside-null radiator (monopole an-
tual coupling, which tends to direct the radiation in the plane
tenna). The latter element is useful when broadside of the array as a surface wave, rather than as a wave propa-
radiation is undesirable, such as in reducing broadside gating away from the array. Careful design of the array ele-
clutter and jamming. As the radar beam is steered ment shape, size, and spacing can prevent the occurrence of
away from 0° (broadside) toward 60°, the conven- blind spots.
tional broadside-peak-type element radiation pattern
drops off, but the broadside-null-type element radia- Phased-array radiating elements, primarily for air-
tion pattern increases to a peak at about 45° to 50°. borne applications, were investigated at Lincoln Lab-
Early developments of phased-array radiating ele- oratory during the period from 1968 to 1980.
ment technology were conducted at Lincoln Labora- Waveguide elements of various designs (rectangular,
tory during the period from 1959 to 1967. Beginning square, and circular) were studied in great detail, both
in 1959, the Laboratory contributed to the theoreti- theoretically and experimentally [13–19]. Diamond
cal understanding of phased arrays, particularly the analyzed waveguide elements [13]; later, with Knittel,
effects of array mutual coupling on the performance he developed a phased-array-element design proce-
of various configurations of dipole arrays; for ex- dure [14]. They also showed that small arrays can be
ample, the reports by Allen et al. [3–6, 27–32]. Figure used effectively to design array-radiating elements for
6 shows one of the early L-band dipole-phased-array large arrays [33].
test beds used in measuring array-element patterns, A computer program known as RWED (rectangu-
mutual coupling, and array active-scan impedance. lar waveguide-element design) [34] was developed for

326 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

phased-array analysis, using the Diamond theoretical


formulation. This software was widely circulated by
the Laboratory to the phased-array industry, where it
has been used extensively for designing waveguide
phased arrays.
In the early 1970s, Tsandoulas at Lincoln Labora-
tory utilized the waveguide-array-analysis software
developed by Diamond to design low-sidelobe wave-
guide phased arrays for airborne application in a dis-
placed-phase-center radar antenna [15]. Figure 7
shows a set of measured low-sidelobe L-band phased-
array beam-scanning patterns for the Multiple-An-
tenna Surveillance Radar (MASR) (see also the article
entitled “Displaced-Phase-Center Antenna Tech-
nique,” by Charles Edward Muehe and Melvin
Labitt, in this issue).
In the mid-1980s, Lincoln Laboratory was heavily
involved in the development of a phased-array an-

θ
φ

60° 60°
Scan sector

FIGURE 6. An early L-band dipole phased-array test bed de-


veloped by the Sperry Rand Corporation, used in Lincoln
Laboratory array investigations during the 1960s.

(a) tenna for a space-based-radar surveillance system in-



tended to detect and track aircraft, ships, armored ve-
30° 30° hicles, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles [35]. As a
Scan θ Scan part of this work, the Laboratory made major contri-
sector φ sector butions to the analysis, design, calibration, and test-
ing of space-based-radar antenna systems. A phased-
60° 60°
array radar orbiting the earth must demonstrate a
number of unique characteristics that require novel
antenna technology if the radar is to satisfy mission
needs. For example, radar clutter is very large when
seen by a space-borne radar looking down at the
earth. In addition, the radar satellite speed is very fast,
(b)
and the Doppler shifts of the radar clutter echoes tend
FIGURE 5. The radiation patterns of (a) a conventional to mask the desired radar-target returns. Thus meth-
broadside-peak radiating element (dipole or waveguide) and
ods for canceling radar clutter, as viewed from space,
(b) a broadside-null radiating element (monopole). A broad-
side-null element places a blind spot in directions where it is are necessary. The radar also requires nulling of large
undesirable to transmit or receive radar energy ground-based jammers.

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• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

0 cancellation on the order of 40 dB, as shown in the


graph in Figure 9.
Relative gain (dB)

–10 A displaced-phase-center antenna designed for


clutter cancellation normally turns off elements in or-
–20 der to shift the array phase center. Thus the phase
center can be moved only in discrete columns or
–30 rows, dictated by the element spacing. For the space-
based radar, a method utilizing an amplitude taper for
–40 moving the phase center an arbitrary distance (in-
–72 –48 –24 0 24 48 72 cluding a fraction of a column) was developed [36].
Scan angle (deg) Low-sidelobe antenna patterns and adaptive null-
FIGURE 7. Low-sidelobe radiation patterns from the L-band ing are useful in suppressing both jamming and radar
Multiple-Antenna Surveillance Radar (MASR) waveguide clutter. An ultralow-sidelobe adaptive-array antenna
phased-array antenna at midband. The beams are scanned at UHF called RSTER (Radar Surveillance Technol-
to a maximum of ± 45° in azimuth. Typically, the first sidelobe ogy Experimental Radar) was developed by Westing-
is at the –36-dB to –38-dB level, with the peaks of all others
below –42 dB (except one shown). The achieved low-side-
house Corporation for Lincoln Laboratory, with aver-
lobe levels represent the best performance at the time for age sidelobes in azimuth on the order of 60 dB below
electronically scanned array antennas. the main lobe (see the article entitled “Radars for the
Detection and Tracking of Cruise Missiles,” by Lee
System aspects of the Lincoln Laboratory–de- O. Upton and Lewis A. Thurman, in this issue). This
signed space-based radar are described in the previ- array used a corporate beamformer, with special care
ously mentioned article by Muehe and Labitt in this taken to reduce amplitude errors and phase-illumina-
issue. The Laboratory’s low-altitude space-based-ra- tion errors across the array [37].
dar concept favored monopole-type radiators that
had minimum radiation in the subsatellite (nadir) di- Phase Shifters
rection, to reduce radar clutter and jamming. Fenn Lincoln Laboratory worked intensively in the late
investigated this problem both theoretically and ex- 1950s and in the 1960s to develop phase shifters for
perimentally for vertically polarized monopoles [20] the electronic beam steering of phased-array radars
and for horizontally polarized loops [21]. Figure 8 desired in that time period. Many of the Laboratory
shows an L-band space-based-radar phased-array an- development efforts in the area of phase shifters and
tenna test bed with 96 active monopole radiating ele- related programs at that time are described in a book
ments (resembling a bed of nails). This displaced- chapter by William J. Ince and Donald H. Temme
phase-center array achieved a measured clutter [38].

FIGURE 8. Displaced-phase-center monopole phased-array antenna test bed with 96 active


monopole radiating elements. This L-band antenna was used for space-based-radar clutter-
cancellation measurements.

328 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

70 ray. They tended to have high loss (several dB) at mi-


Measured at array scan angle θs = 40°
Clutter-cancellation ratio (dB)

crowave frequencies, which is certainly a drawback.


Theory
60 Concurrently, new RF positive-intrinsic-negative
θ = 30° (PIN) diodes used in microwave switching studies led
s
40° to simpler lower-loss phase shifters. A. Uhlir of Bell
50
Telephone Laboratories had shown theoretically how
the PIN diode would be ideal for microwave switches,
40
with a low impedance when DC-forward-biased and
55° a high impedance when DC-reverse-biased [38]. The
30 DC-injected carriers in a PIN diode have long life-
0 1 2 3 4 5 6
times compared to an RF period, but not for an IF
Phase-center displacement (columns)
period. Thus, for RF frequencies, the PIN diode does
FIGURE 9. The displaced-phase-center antenna test-bed ar- not rectify but has a low impedance when flooded
ray shown in Figure 8 achieved a measured clutter-cancella- with DC-injected carriers and a high impedance (be-
tion ratio on the order of 40 dB. The theoretical curves in-
coming a small capacitor) without injected carriers.
clude only array mutual-coupling effects [80].
Temme at Lincoln Laboratory used these PIN di-
odes to construct the first-ever digital-diode L-band
The first fielded phased-array radar, called ESAR low-loss phase shifter [5], which is shown in Figure
(Electronically Scanned Array Radar), was built by 11. Low-loss diode phase shifters were implemented
Bendix and completed in 1960 [39]. ESAR had IF in several fielded phased-array radars used in missile
analog phase shifters and an IF beamformer. This detection, such as HAPDAR (Hard Point Demon-
beamforming technique was bulky and required good stration Array Radar), AN/FPS-85, MSR (Missile
temperature control. One of the Laboratory’s early Site Radar), Cobra Dane, and the S-band Cobra Judy
initiatives in phased-array beam steering was the de- [4, 39–41]. MSR used a different circuit configura-
velopment of digital IF beam-steering techniques that tion, which was devised by J.F. White [42] to achieve
emphasized smaller size and simplicity in control. substantially higher RF power capabilities. When two
This approach utilized diode-controlled digital phase equal shunt reactances are spaced a quarter-wave-
shifters that switched in and out fractional wave- length apart on a transmission line, a match remains
lengths of transmission line arranged in a binary cas- and a phase shift is introduced. Each shunt reactance
cade and placed in each antenna channel to properly was connected and disconnected across the transmis-
phase the elements of the radiating array. sion line via a PIN-diode switch to obtain a small
These phase shifters, an example of which is shown variable phase shift, but at a large power level. Sixteen
in Figure 10, were tested in an experimental linear ar- pairs were used in the MSR phase shifter. The power

FIGURE 10. Early intermediate-frequency six-bit digital phase shifter. Each bit consists of a length
of coaxial cable that can be switched into the signal path to produce the desired phase shift.

VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 329


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

FIGURE 11. A four-bit low-loss hybrid L-band diode phase shifter. The stripline ground planes
have been removed for clarity.

level, the bandwidth, and the RF loss are interrelated in the microwave region [46]. Figure 12 shows a pho-
by the reactance and diode parameters. tograph of a production model of this digital ferrite
The L-band HAPDAR phased-array radar [41] phase shifter. The development of improved ferrite
was built by Sperry and was completed in 1965. The materials was an important aspect of attaining the
UHF AN/FPS-85 [43] phased-array radar was built good performance promised by ferrite phase shifters.
by Bendix and was completed in 1968. The S-band Understanding the mechanical stress on the ferrite
MSR was built by Raytheon and was completed in toroid led to the development of ferrite material com-
1969. The L-band Cobra Dane phased-array radar, positions with less stress sensitivity, as investigated by
located in Shemya, Alaska, for observation of Soviet Ernest Stern, Temme, and Gerald F. Dionne [47–49].
missile tests, was built by Raytheon and was com- A lower-cost ferrite material—lithium ferrite—de-
pleted in 1976. The article in this issue entitled veloped by the Laboratory with the assistance of
“Wideband Radar for Ballistic Missile Defense and Ampex Corporation had less temperature sensitivity
Range-Doppler Imaging of Satellites,” by William W. to the magnetization that directly controls the phase
Camp et al., describes the Cobra Dane radar in more
detail. Four UHF Position and Velocity Extraction
(PAVE) Phased Array Warning System (PAWS) [44] 180° element
phased-array radars (all solid state) were built by
Raytheon, and are still used for missile warning and Dielectric
BeO separators
space surveillance. slabs Two-section
Ferrite phase shifters, a development that started quarter-wave
Driver transformer
later than diode phase shifters, promised better per- terminal
formance than diode phase shifters (primarily lower
Cooling fins
microwave loss) at S-band and higher frequencies.
Early discussions and analyses were done at the Labo- 90° element
45° element
ratory, which contributed to the early microwave-fer-
rite development [45]. 22.5° element
The ferrite phase shifter with a dielectric-loaded
toroid was conceived and analyzed at the Laboratory.
FIGURE 12. A Westinghouse production model of a four-bit
It was the first phase shifter with less than one dB in- C-band ferrite phase shifter, with the waveguide cover re-
sertion loss that could handle kilowatts of peak power moved.

330 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

shift. The use of this material also permitted the ex- mit/receive-module development program. The goals
tension of ferrite-phase-shifter operation to millime- of this program were to utilize monolithic microwave
ter-wavelength frequencies [50]. A flux-drive tech- integrated circuits (MMIC) and gallium-arsenide
nique, also developed by the Laboratory, enabled digital circuitry to produce low-weight, small-size,
phase setting of phase shifters with low temperature highly radiation resistant, highly efficient, and afford-
sensitivity and five-bit accuracy without the penalty able modules that were capable of controlling signal
of complexity in the phase shifter and driver [51]. phase accurately over the anticipated temperature
These ferrite-phase-shifter techniques were used in range, with adequate RF-power generation, low DC-
the S-band Aegis phased-array radar developed for power consumption, and low-noise operation. Figure
the U.S. Navy by RCA in 1974, the C-band Patriot 13 illustrates the configuration of the L-band trans-
radar developed for the U.S. Army by Raytheon in mit/receive module. Both General Electric and Ray-
1975, and the X-band Joint Surveillance Target At- theon produced several versions of transmit/receive
tack Radar System (Joint STARS) developed for the modules for this program; Figure 14 shows a General
U.S. Air Force by Grumman in 1988 [52]. Two pro- Electric module.
totypes of Joint STARS flew forty-nine missions in Lightweight L-band transmit/receive module tech-
Operation Desert Storm in 1991; a Joint STARS ra- nology developed for space-based radar applications
dar surveillance image is shown in Figure 11 in the was utilized in the Iridium commercial satellite
article by Muehe and Labitt in this issue. communications system, which used phased-array
antennas [53]. Gallium-arsenide MMIC transmit/re-
Solid State Transmit/Receive Modules ceive-module technology is used in the Theater High-
From 1982 to 1990, Lincoln Laboratory led a joint Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) X-band phased-ar-
U.S. Air Force/U.S. Navy space-based-radar trans- ray radar system [54] built by Raytheon Corporation.

Amplifier Power amplifier Circulator


Transmit

signal
Phase To and from

shifter antenna
Beamformer Attenuator

A CR & D
Command register
and driver (CR & D)
Beamformer Attenuator CR & D

B CR & D
Low-noise
amplifier
Module

Other modules Other modules






Command
Subarray Power
computation
conditioning
chip

Radar control processor Prime power

FIGURE 13. Diagram for desired L-band transmit/receive module for space-based-radar applications. The module con-
tains switches that select either the transmit or receive paths. The receive path contains two attenuators to illuminate two
displaced phase centers, represented by beamformers A and B. The transmit path contains a phase shifter and a power
amplifier to achieve the desired transmit power level for the radar.

VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 331


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

lithic circuits had not yet sufficiently matured. The


limited quality of early materials and the limitations
of processing technology at the time led to poor pro-
duction yields and inadequate performance of mono-
lithic components. Hence the research effort was ini-
tially based on hybrid designs combining integrated
circuits with more conventional components. Hybrid
circuits were composed of discrete packaged transis-
tors, diode phase-shifting circuits and switches, and
passive components, all attached to a common ce-
ramic substrate and connected to intervening planar
circuits by means of wire bonds. Early development
FIGURE 14. General Electric L-band transmit/receive mod- programs based on the hybrid-design concept, in the
ule for space-based radar operations.
late 1960s and early 1970s, were performed primarily
in industrial laboratories, including those at Texas In-
struments, Raytheon, RCA, Westinghouse, General
The Evolution of Solid State Active Elements Electric, and Hughes. In particular, T. Hyltin of Texas
for Phased-Array Antennas Instruments, with the support of R. Albert and W.
The possibility of creating an all-solid-state realiza- Edwards at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio,
tion of the phased-array concept arose in the late initiated the Molecular Electronics for Radar Applica-
1960s, notably through an initiative by Mel Vosburg tions (MERA) program to build a solid state airborne
of the Institute for Defense Analyses, a study and radar.
analysis center sponsored by the Department of De- In the late 1960s, under Blake’s impetus, Lincoln
fense (DoD). Vosburg and Carl Blake of Lincoln Laboratory established a microwave integrated-circuit
Laboratory worked together in this venture. Blake facility to develop and refine the technology of pre-
had succeeded John Allen as leader of the Array Ra- paring substrates and applying circuits and devices,
dars group in which the seminal work on phased-ar- mainly in the hybrid mode, to the required specifica-
ray theory and development had taken place during tions for microwave use. Planar circuits were fabri-
the previous decade, as described earlier in this article. cated, on steadily improving ceramic substrate mate-
With support from the U.S. Army’s ballistic-missile- rials—principally aluminum oxide—with the most
defense program at the Ballistic Missile Defense refined photolithography materials and techniques
Advanced Technology Center (BMDATC) of Hunts- then available. With these improvements, and with
ville, Alabama, development of components with this U.S. Army sponsorship of a program called CAMEL
phased-array objective was initiated at Lincoln Labo- by the U.S. Army’s Fort Monmouth, New Jersey,
ratory in the 1970s. The initial focus was on arrays in laboratory, researchers began developing a 100-ele-
the L-band frequency range. ment L-band (1.0 to 2.0 GHz) test array [55]. A sec-
While the earlier generation of phased arrays had ond-generation development was the Advanced
been based on phasers (variable phase shifters) in con- Fielded Array Radar (AFAR) at RCA in Moorestown,
ductive-tube waveguides and centralized high-power New Jersey, with modules produced by Westing-
vacuum tubes, developers envisioned that array de- house. Although AFAR was not carried to comple-
signs incorporating solid state integrated circuits tion, the effort was valuable in demonstrating the
would open the array concept to a wide range of im- promises and the limits of hybrid technology.
portant applications, which would benefit from the
major advantages of these circuits, especially compact Gallium-Arsenide Monolithic Integrated Circuits
size, low weight, low cost, and high reliability. The all-solid-state UHF ground-based radar called
In the 1960s the technology required for mono- PAVE PAWS was built with hybrid technology, and it

332 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

performed successfully. The designs of other military Success in these pioneering efforts depended on
defense radars, such as the Reliable Advanced Solid the solution of numerous interrelated problems. The
State Radar (RASSR) and the Solid State Phased Ar- potential advantages of higher microwave or millime-
ray (SSPA) [56] sponsored by the U.S. Air Force, ter-wave frequencies, suitable for the narrow-beam,
were based on similar solid-state hybrid technology. high-resolution tracking function of radars, imposed
Eventually, however, researchers realized that a large- stringent requirements on the quality of gallium-ars-
scale, solid-state phased-array radar made with hybrid enide materials for monolithic wafers, as well as rigor-
circuits would require a very large number of discrete ous demands on the optics, metallurgy, and chemistry
components and associated wire bonds, which would of the photolithography process.
lead to excessive cost and inferior reliability compared The semi-insulating gallium-arsenide substrate on
to the promise of monolithic technology. Conse- whose surface the epitaxial device layers are fabricated
quently, the phased-array research effort shifted to- is advantageous for its electrically inert character, per-
ward the development and deployment of fully inte- mitting low insertion loss and also low coupling loss
grated circuits composed of devices created on a between the closely spaced circuit components. This
common semiconductor substrate [57]. key dielectric property was confirmed in detailed
The substrate material recognized as most promis- measurements of complex permittivity of gallium ars-
ing was gallium arsenide, principally for its character- enide in the range of 2.5 to 36.0 GHz by William E.
istically high carrier mobility, and thus its suitability Courtney at Lincoln Laboratory [61]. These mea-
for high-frequency systems, specifically in the micro- surements showed that, when well processed, the ma-
wave (1 to 30 GHz) and millimeter-wave (30 to 300 terial is in fact free of the frequency-dependent loss
GHz) frequency ranges. The highest available fre- characteristics that some researchers had feared. As
quencies, and accordingly the shortest wavelengths, device and circuit quality improved, still higher per-
are essential to form narrow beams for high resolution formance of the substrate was required for electrical
in target tracking, while lower frequencies, with bet- isolation of the devices, envisioned as densely posi-
ter prospects to fulfill the requirement of high trans- tioned on the semiconductor wafer, against interac-
mitter power, are favored for the associated functions tion with each other. An early success in this effort,
of surveillance and search. In 1968, in an important demonstrated at Lincoln Laboratory [62], was the
development, E.W. Mehal and R.W. Wacker [58] and process of passivation by means of proton bombard-
G.D. Vendelin et al. [59], all working at Texas ment, to create crystalline defects and thereby impart
Instruments, reported an early success in develop- near-intrinsic-semiconductor properties. Later, a sim-
ment of devices and circuits on gallium arsenide for pler and less costly isolating technique, which was
microwave and millimeter-wave frequencies. Another widely adopted, involved heavy doping of the inter-
significant advance in those years was a monolithic vening areas of the substrate to reduce carrier lifetime.
low-noise field-effect transistor (FET) microwave The early efforts in device development at Texas
amplifier on gallium arsenide, reported by W. Bäch- Instruments led to both hybrid and monolithic cir-
told et al. at the IBM laboratory in Zurich [60]. cuits, including balanced mixers, Gunn-diode oscilla-
In Lincoln Laboratory, Blake and Roger W. Sud- tors, and frequency multipliers for receiver applica-
bury collaborated to advance support for the MMIC tions at millimeter-wave frequencies. Following these
phased array. The Laboratory organized its effort for basic advances, various research groups produced pla-
these projects by establishing a mutually complemen- nar devices showing dramatically improved perfor-
tary relationship between the Microelectronics group mance. Such advances at the Laboratory and in in-
in the Solid State Research division, which contrib- dustry led to a surge of development, especially of
uted the development and refinement of materials gallium-arsenide metal-semiconductor field-effect
along with device fabrication and testing, and the Ex- transistors (MESFET), both in discrete form and as
perimental Systems group, which contributed the cir- active devices on monolithic chips. The completely
cuit designs for phased-array technology. monolithic microwave amplifier chip with gallium-

VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 333


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

arsenide MESFETs and matching circuits was first re- puter-aided device and circuit design programs (a
ported by R.S. Pengelly and J.A. Turner at Plessey Co. powerful discipline then still in its infancy); and proof
Ltd. in 1976 [63]; this achievement led to a rapid in- of feasibility to show that monolithic circuits can find
crease in the involvement of all the leading microwave applications in circuits that are suitable and afford-
research laboratories in further development of able for wide use in military systems.
monolithic circuits. Lincoln Laboratory became deeply involved in this
A presentation by Courtney et al. in 1980 [64] developing technology, supported by BMDATC. It
characterized the problems and potential of a mono- was proposed that the Laboratory continue to serve in
lithic receiver, which is central to the concept of a its advisory role to the government agencies that were
solid-state phased array. The Laboratory took on an funding various aspects of the new technologies,
advisory role for government agencies that were sup- while at the same time enhancing the Laboratory’s
porting the new generation of phased-array design. At own expertise in the area by developing the technol-
the same time the Laboratory continued to conduct ogy for a millimeter-wave transmit/receive module—
its own research directed toward (1) the development specifically, for a Ka-band (26.5 to 40 GHz) phased-
of technology applicable to the transmit/receive mod- array seeker on a missile.
ule for array antennas in military systems, as well as The Ka-band module proposed for development
(2) the enhancement of its own capability for innova- at Lincoln Laboratory under the MIMIC program
tion and consultation. was a single-polarization transmit/receive module
There was interest in Lincoln Laboratory’s propos- with average output power on the order of 100 mW
als for research in solid-state-circuit technology from in the millimeter-wave range at 34 GHz. The system
the Very High-Speed Integrated Circuits (VHSIC) considerations for such a radar and component devel-
program under Sonny Maynard of the DoD. In the opment to that date were reviewed in 1978 by R.W.
1980s, major support for the development of mono- Laton et al. [66] and by Sudbury [67] at Lincoln
lithic microwave technology came through the efforts Laboratory. Figure 15 illustrates the Ka-band trans-
of Elliot Cohen, a DoD associate of Maynard’s and a mit/receive-module configuration and includes illus-
major advocate, with Blake, of investigation into trations of the component chips as of 1985 [68, 57].
practical uses of gallium arsenide for microwave inte- The receiver section was based on planar Schottky-
grated circuits. Cohen sponsored the Microwave and barrier diodes in a balanced-mixer/heterodyne con-
Millimeter Wave Monolithic Integrated Circuits figuration [69]. A novel approach in this circuit was
(MIMIC) program [65] within the Defense Ad- the dual use of the mixer: in receive mode to produce
vanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The pro- an L-band IF signal, and as a switch to protect the re-
gram was based on the concept of an “active element” ceiver in transmit mode [70]. The mixer output was
phased array; i.e., an array with integrated-circuit followed by a two-stage low-noise IF amplifier, devel-
phasers and transmit/receive capability as an integral oped at Lincoln Laboratory, which used a very low-
part of each antenna element, locked to a central loss planar coupling capacitor fabricated with high-
phase and amplitude standard. dielectric tantalum pentoxide [71].
The MIMIC program maintained the impetus of In addition to fabricating the dual-function mixer
the earlier developments and encouraged the micro- shown in Figure 15, the Laboratory also fabricated a
wave industry to construct the large gallium-arsenide mixer-preamplifier monolithic chip, successfully
processing facilities that exist today for the fabrication combining for the first time two different active mi-
of phased-array and telecommunication modules. crowave devices on the same chip. These devices were
The MIMIC program’s objectives included develop- a millimeter-wave Schottky-diode mixer followed by
ment of volume production technology to produce a MESFET IF amplifier operating at 1.0 to 2.0 GHz.
large-diameter, high-quality substrates suitable for The transmitter chain incorporated a 17-GHz
commercial production of MESFETs optimized for MESFET driver amplifier, a low-loss phaser using
high power or for low noise; development of com- Schottky diodes, and a 17-GHz FET power amplifier

334 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

To antenna
34 GHz

Transmit/
receive

×2
Local oscillator
Frequency doubler Dual-function mixer
and transmit/receive switch

Power
amplifier

Low-noise
FET power amplifier amplifier

IF
From
(1–2 GHz)
voltage-controlled
oscillator
(17 GHz)
Phase shifter Low-noise IF amplifier

FIGURE 15. Module configuration and organization of component chips for a gallium-arsenide active-element trans-
mit/receive circuit. The transmit side includes phase control and field-effect transistor (FET) power amplification at
17 GHz, and a frequency doubler. On the receive side, a dual unit incorporates a transmit/receive switch and a mixer
that produces the intermediate frequency (IF) at 1 to 2 GHz. This dual unit is followed by a low-noise output amplifier.

driving a doubler to produce output power at 34 sile-defense phased-array radar system [54] built by
GHz [72]. The monolithic doublers [73] were planar Raytheon Corporation. The decade of the 1990s saw
series-connected varactor diodes embedded in match- widespread application of gallium-arsenide mono-
ing circuits on a chip. They produced output greater lithic integrated circuits in many fields, including ra-
than 100 milliwatts with 35% efficiency at Ka-band dar, the Global Positioning System (GPS), direct-sat-
frequencies [74]. The strategy of frequency doubling ellite-broadcast receivers, and commercial wireless
from 17 GHz (Ku band, 12.0 to 18.0 GHz) to 34 telephony.
GHz (Ka band) was devised, because in the late 1970s
and early 1980s the cutoff frequency of the MESFET Array Calibration and Testing
amplifiers was not sufficiently high for operation at Phased-array antennas require accurate calibration of
millimeter-wave frequencies. their multiplicity of transmit/receive channels, so that
By 1990, active solid state devices at microwave the radar main beam can be pointed in the correct di-
frequencies were becoming ubiquitous; MMICs were rection and the sidelobe levels of the radar antenna
routinely developed for commercial applications such can be controlled. In practice, the phase shift through
as automobile instrumentation and civilian commu- a channel is often affected by temperature and elec-
nications, and active transmit/receive modules were tronic drift; thus methods for calibration of a fielded
being utilized for large phased arrays. Gallium-ars- radar system are required. Lincoln Laboratory has
enide MMIC transmit/receive-module technology is pioneered several phased-array calibration and radia-
used in the X-band (8.0 to 12.0 GHz) theater-mis- tion-pattern measurement techniques [75–80].

VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 335


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

0
(a)
Measured 0

Absolute gain (dBi)


Relative gain (dB)

–20 Theory

–20
–40

–40
–60

–60
–80
–90 –60 –30 0 30 60 90
Azimuth (deg)

FIGURE 16. Low-sidelobe radiation patterns for an L-band


thirty-two-element monopole phased-array antenna. The av- (b)
erage measured sidelobe level is –50 dB, which is close to
the average theoretical sidelobe level of –52.6 dB.

Airborne and space-based phased arrays contain-


ing thousands of transmit/receive channels require
onboard techniques for in-flight calibration. One
such calibration technique involved the use of the in-
herent array mutual coupling to transmit and receive
signals between pairs of elements in the array, as de-
scribed in a paper by H.M. Aumann et al. (this paper
won the 1990 IEEE Antennas and Propagation
Society’s Best Applications Award) [75]. The mea-
FIGURE 17. (a) Lincoln Laboratory’s ground-test facility for
sured signals between all pairs of elements in the array
adaptive phased-array antenna evaluation in space-based-
allow a complete characterization of the relative am- radar applications. (b) This facility has interior walls covered
plitude and phase response of each channel in the ar- with radiation-absorbing material, which enables full-scale
ray beamformer. Thus the channel phase shifters and real-time testing of radar capability at a test distance of ap-
attenuators (illustrated in Figure 13) can be calibrated proximately one aperture diameter.
to generate any desired phase/amplitude distribution
across the aperture of the array. Furthermore, it was to calibrate an experimental test array [76]. Methods
discovered that once the desired phase and amplitude for compensating for the effects of variations in the
distributions had been applied to the array, a second array radiating-element patterns [77] and failed radi-
series of mutual-coupling measurements allowed a ating elements [78] were also developed. The Labora-
measurement of the phased-array radiation patterns. tory also explored planar near-field calibration and
The mutual-coupling calibration technique was ex- testing in the antenna reactive region (extremely close
perimentally verified by using the monopole phased- near field) to accurately measure low-sidelobe radia-
array antenna shown in Figure 8. This calibration tion patterns [79]. Figure 16 shows a typical low-
technique proved to be a fast and accurate way of sidelobe monopole phased-array radiation pattern
measuring one-dimensional and two-dimensional ar- measured with the reactive-region near-field-scan-
ray radiation patterns, compared to conventional far- ning approach. The measured average sidelobe level
field measurement techniques. is –50 dB, close to the theoretical value. Space-based
The Laboratory explored various other approaches radars or airborne radars can use multiple displaced
for calibrating and testing low-sidelobe phased arrays. phase centers to cancel clutter, as described in the ar-
For example, adaptive-nulling techniques were used ticle by Muehe and Labitt in this issue. A near-field

336 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

scanning method for measuring the clutter-cancella- challenges in military and civilian systems. Since
tion performance of displaced-phase-center antennas 1958 the Laboratory has contributed significantly to
was also demonstrated [80]. the nation’s phased-array radar capabilities. Technolo-
The above phased-array testing techniques are gen- gies developed at the Laboratory have been imple-
erally restricted to non-real-time operation. There are mented in many phased-array radars in field opera-
many instances, however, when it is desirable to test a tions. The Laboratory is continuing to investigate
radar system, either in the field or prior to deploy- new phased-array technologies in such areas as photo-
ment, under simulated real-time conditions that in- nic beamforming, micro-electromechanical phase
clude radar targets, clutter, and jamming. Some of shifters, and advanced space-time adaptive processing
these radars can have large apertures, on the order of arrays.
five to twenty meters. Normally, radars operate under We foresee great promise in the combination of the
far-field conditions in which the radiated wavefront is technologies of low-cost all-solid-state array modules,
approximately planar. Because testing these radar an- wide-bandwidth analog-to-digital converters, and
tennas under far-field conditions can require a range adaptive digital beamforming to allow a variety of so-
several miles long, alternative shorter-range testing is phisticated radar operating modes and radar systems.
desirable. A near-field ground-test facility for phased- During the past forty years, Lincoln Laboratory
array antenna evaluation in space-based radar applica- was privileged to work in this most interesting area of
tions was developed by Lincoln Laboratory [81]. This radar technology and be part of the extensive national
facility, which consists of a large building with the in- effort to make the vision of electronic beam steering
terior walls covered with radiation-absorbing mate- become a reality [1]. We can posit that the era of the
rial, enables full-scale real-time testing of phased-ar- phased-array radar is just beginning!
ray radar capability at a test distance of approximately
one aperture diameter. The test facility, shown in Fig- Acknowledgments
ure 17, provides the capability of implementing a The authors would like to acknowledge Jerald A.
number of novel test procedures developed by the Weiss and Roger W. Sudbury of Lincoln Laboratory
Laboratory for measuring the radar system perfor- for their technical contributions to this article. We
mance for antennas up to about twelve meters in also acknowledge George Knittel and John Allen for
length. their review of the manuscript, and Chang-Lee Chen,
A focused near-field method to test the real-time Leonard J. Mahoney, and Anand Gopinath for fur-
performance of adaptive phased arrays for jammer nishing material for the manuscript.
suppression was theoretically analyzed for single-
phase-center antennas [82] and multiple-phase-cen-
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The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

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VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL 339


• FENN, TEMME, DELANEY, AND COURTNEY
The Development of Phased-Array Radar Technology

 .   .   .   . 


is a senior staff member in the is a former senior staff member came to Lincoln Laboratory in was born in Lurgan County,
Advanced Electromagnetic in the Communications divi- 1957 after receiving a B.E.E. Armagh, Northern Ireland. He
Systems group. He joined sion, and at present a consult- degree from Rensselaer Poly- received a B.Sc. degree in
Lincoln Laboratory in 1981 ant to the Analog Device technic Institute. In 1959 he physics and a Ph.D. degree in
and was a member of the Technology group. His received an S.M.E.E. degree electrical engineering from the
Space Radar Technology group current research interest is in from MIT, where he became Queen’s University of Belfast,
from 1982 to 1991, where his ferrite-superconductor control involved in radar with a thesis Northern Ireland, in 1959 and
research was in phased-array devices. Some of the major on UHF power amplifiers for 1963, respectively. From 1963
antenna design, adaptive-array Laboratory programs he con- phased arrays. His early re- to 1966 he was a Department
near-field testing, and antenna tributed to were early phase- search at the Laboratory in- of Scientific and Industrial
and radar cross-section mea- shifter developments, tactical volved phased-array radars. At Research and Ministry of
surements. From 1992 to air-surveillance radar Kwajalein Atoll he led the Aviation postdoctoral research
1999 he was an assistant group (HOWLS), millimeter homing ALCOR wideband radar fellow in the Department of
leader in the RF Technology radar, and space-borne surveil- project. Returning to the Electrical Engineering, Univer-
group, where he managed lance radar. He is currently Laboratory in 1970, he held sity of Leeds, England. From
programs involving optically assisting the Concord Middle management positions of 1966 to 1968 he was a
controlled phased-array anten- School in increasing the phys- increasing responsibility in postdoctoral fellow, Division
nas and the measurement of ics content of the basic science missile defense, air defense, air of Sponsored Research, in the
atmospheric effects on ra- course. He received a B.S. traffic control, and battlefield Center for Materials Science
domes and satellite communi- degree in electrical engineering surveillance, all involving radar and Engineering at MIT. He
cations. In 2000 he was elected from the University of Ne- systems. From 1973 to 1976 was a staff member from 1968
a Fellow of the IEEE for his braska, and an S.M. degree in he served in the Office of the to 1995 at Lincoln Laboratory.
contributions to the theory electrical engineering from Secretary of Defense, with
and practice of adaptive MIT. Before joining Lincoln responsibilities for R&D in
phased-array antennas. In Laboratory in 1957 he was in strategic defense systems. In
1990 he was a corecipient of the U.S. Air Force. He is a life 1987 he was appointed assis-
the IEEE Antennas and member of the IEEE and a tant director of the Laboratory,
Propagation Society’s H.A. member of Sigma Xi. and in 1995 he became a
Wheeler Applications Prize Director’s Office Fellow. He
Paper Award for a paper he has served on many govern-
coauthored for the IEEE ment committees, including
Transactions on Antennas and the Air Force Scientific Advi-
Propagation. He also received sory Board and the Defense
the IEEE/URSI-sponsored Science Board. He has been
1994 International Sympo- awarded the Secretary of
sium on Antennas (JINA 94) Defense Meritorious Civilian
Award for the best poster Service Medal and the Air
presentation. He has a B.S. Force Exceptional Civilian
degree from the University of Service Medal. In 1991 he was
Illinois in Chicago, and M.S. elected a Fellow of the IEEE.
and Ph.D. degrees from Ohio His dominant recreational
State University, Columbus, pursuit is fly fishing, including
all in electrical engineering. far-flung places such as Christ-
mas Island, Patagonia, or the
Kola Peninsula of Russia,
where he catches fish so large
he doesn’t have to lie about
them!

340 LINCOLN LABORATORY JOURNAL VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, 2000

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